Star, monster: The R. Kelly we didn’t know

R. Kelly arriving for the first day of jury selection in his child pornography trial at the Cook County Criminal Courthouse in Chicago. (Courtesy/AP)

It didn’t matter if or if not teen sensation Aaliyah Dana Haughton had copied the chart topping Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number from Bobby Caldwell’s What You Won’t Do for Love.
To her fans, the 1994 release was an angelic obsession. This was a defining moment for the then 15-year-old who had started her music career at 11 before dying in 2001, at the age of 22.

Then came the news that has played a big role in the trial of R&B superstar R Kelly; Aaliyah was married at 15 to Robert Sylvester Kelly (his real name). R Kelly was 27 at the time.